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Sandra

Sandra

My heart stopped and I almost lost my life to this disease

My name is Sandra. I am 31 years old and and I live in Bucaramanga, Colombia. 10 years ago I acquired Chagas disease. Before that, I had a normal life. One day out of the blue I started having high fevers. Then I started to feel very tired and weak - so much so that I had to be hospitalized. Even after multiple tests the Doctors did not know what was going on. Things went from bad to worse and my heart became affected – the doctors told me there was fluid around it and they had to drain it. I don’t know what happened next because I can’t remember – I woke up three days later in intensive care and the medical team told me that my heart stopped for more than one hour and that I had been resuscitated and required life support. The following days my heart was still very unwell and I was again resuscitated – things were so serious that I needed a heart transplant. On February 21, 2010, I received a heart transplant. The tests done on my original heart showed that it was full of the parasites which cause Chagas Disease. I asked my doctors how I could have acquired the disease if I had never seen the insects which carry it. The doctors believe it was in the food I ate as this is another way you can catch Chagas Disease. My family was also tested and my mother was found to have Chagas and we have both now completed the treatment.

My recovery after the transplant was difficult but I am alive to tell this story and that is what matters. Today I lead a normal life. I got married five years after that and I take my medication for life. My heart stopped and I almost lost my life to this disease. I always wonder if a diagnosis earlier would have prevented it. Today- I just concentrate on living, and I think I was very lucky and thank God and the doctors I had a second chance.